THE LEXICAL-GRAMMATICAL, PHONETICAL-GRAPHICAL PECULIARITIES OF SHORT FORMS

Abstract

This article focuses on the analysis of lexical, grammatical, phonetic and graphic features of abbreviated and full-length lexical items. Basic lexemes and abbreviated items are compared in terms of their graphic design, phonetics, morphology, semantics, grammar, and syntax. The article also explores the heterogeneous composition of abbreviated lexical items and establishes the hierarchy of criteria, namely graphic, phonetic, structural-morphological, semantic, and communicative pragmatic ones, for various types of abbreviated items. In general, the graphic criterion has the least effect on the formation of an abbreviation. It is relevant only for acronyms, that is, a group of graphic abbreviations that do not have an aural form. The phonetic criterion determines acronyms read in syllables, the most important feature for which is a harmonic phonation, which is why the base lexeme may retain as many letters as necessary to ensure the optimal pronunciation of the fragmented item. The harmony of phonation of abbreviations is imparted by vowels that form the structure of the abbreviation or are added in the phonation process. When discarding a part of a word containing the accented syllable, as in the case of truncation, an accent is placed on the syllable that is unaccented in the word’s original form. The morphological criterion is no less important for truncations, because it blocks the processes of destruction of morphemes in the process of truncation. The formation of the abbreviation is also largely impacted by the semantic criterion, because even the initial or fi nal part of the word makes it possible to recognise the original form and its content. Thus, normally, after the fragmentation process, only that part of the word that carries most information remains. The communicative-pragmatic criterion, that is, the context criterion, carries most weight in the process of creating acronyms, because, on most occasions, their meaning may only be derived from the context of their original form. This criterion is irrelevant for truncations, as they do not require a base item to decode them.